Coming in From the Cold
by SparkleMione
Summary: After years of married life, Harry has a revelation that changes everything for him and Ginny. Harry is gay. This story focuses on Ginny's point of view. Draco must also confront a life crisis. Harry comes out of the closet, and Ginny comes in from the cold. They all find the warmth of acceptance, new love, and a new perspective on life. [GW/DM]
1. Chapter 1

(I'm a first time writer on this site, so I would greatly appreciate any and all feedback! Thank you! All the characters belong to Rowling, not to me!)

Chapter 1: A Revelation

Ginny kissed James and Albus and tucked them into their bunkbeds for the third time that evening. Lily was already asleep, thank goodness. Then she kicked aside several toy cars from the doorway as she slowly made her way into the kitchen to have her nightly cup of tea. She was tired, and her favorite blue tea cup was gone. Albus had knocked it off the table by accident during dinner, and Ginny's feeble _reparo_ spell had mangled the cup completely. What was wrong with her these days? It was a trivial thing, but she felt a tear moisten her lashes. It had been a long day. Harry did not know or care about the silly cup, or about the fact that his brilliantly competent wife couldn't mend it. Harry was brooding in his bed, just as he had been during dinner time, and for most of the past month. Ever since the miscarriage a year ago, he had retreated more and more from her and everyone. She had cried, begged, argued, lectured him, and was now wondering how much longer she could endure this situation. Damn the tea cup! Ginny took the kettle off the fire and went to try one last time to talk to Harry.

"Harry, we need to talk." she started nervously.

"Alright. I have a headache."

But Ginny was determined. "Harry, please talk to me! I'm exhausted. The house is a mess. The kids don't understand why they never see you any more. I feel like I'm always covering for you to the rest of the world. 'I'm sorry, Harry isn't feeling well today. Harry is too busy to see anyone right now, but I'll pass along your message!...' I just can't do it any more!"

"It's not like you've been bothering to do a lot of cooking and cleaning yourself lately, but I've been very understanding. And I've told you, I don't like all these nosy people intruding on our personal lives. Why can't you just tell them to go away?" he was immediately defensive.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to start a fight!" Ginny had learned not to argue with him. It was a guaranteed way to push him further into his shell. Every time this happened, she was reminded of the summer before he left to track down the last horcruxes. He was so good at shutting her out of anything he thought would upset her. She felt like he was slipping away, and was terrified of losing him. "I'm not complaining either. I just... I'm really worried about you, Harry! There's something very wrong. I know there is! This is not just about the miscarriage anymore, is it? What is going on that you aren't talking to me about?"

Harry looked Ginny in the eyes for the first time in ages, then looked away. After a very long silence, he stammered, "I- I- don't know how to tell you this, Ginny. It... I..." his voice trailed off.

"What? What is it? Are you sick? Did something happen? Please! Whatever it is, we'll figure it out together. You don't have to face this alone!"

More silence.

"I'll look the other way." Ginny turned around. "Can you tell me now?"

"I... I..."

"Are you dying?"

"No, Ginny, I...I think I'm gay." his voice was in a whisper.

"What?" she whipped around to face him. "What did you say?"

"I don't want to ruin everything! I didn't figure it out before, not till last month. And then I was afraid to say anything. I..."

Ginny was thinking very quickly, and listening with all her might. She suddenly sat down. "Of course you had to say something! But I don't understand. Please explain!"

"Well, I thought for ages that I must be bisexual. It was so confusing! You're beautiful. You turn me on. You do know that, right? But sometimes I find myself looking at wizards too, and I didn't know what to think. I thought, since we were married and I am attracted to you, it didn't matter. We'd be fine."

Ginny's eyes widened. She was trying to control her breathing. "...But you're always lonely, aren't you? We've talked about it for years, haven't we? And I never guessed. Oh my God, I never guessed!"

"Do you remember a few weeks ago when I went to see Hermione?"

Ginny nodded. "Wait! You told Hermione? Before you told me?! How could you do that?"

"No, no, no! I didn't tell her. She was the one who figured it out. I was so confused, and I didn't want to hurt you by speculating about something so sensitive... So I thought of asking Hermione."

"Alright then." A silent tear was now running down her face, but Ginny ignored it. "So what did Hermione say?"

"She said it made a lot of sense. That she and I had spent so much time alone together, but still I had always thought of her like a sister. And then the honeymoon-"

Ginny clapped her hands over her mouth "When you wanted to take a detour to visit Hermione and Ron for a few days!"

"Yes, and, and... And everything else between us. She'd been wondering for years about it. And then she did an orientation spell, _ardento orientus_"

"But that spell is dark magic!"

"Well, people think of it that way, but Hermione said it wasn't really. Just taboo for so many centuries. She explained it. If the drop of blood turns blue, that means you are gay, and red means straight... And my blood turned blue-violet." Now Harry's hands were shaking.

"It's okay. We're going to get through this." Ginny said, putting on a brave face.

"I do love you, Ginny. I never wanted to hurt you! I'm so, so sorry."

"Thank you for telling me this now. You can always tell me anything. I'm going to be alright, but I need to go think about this alone now. You understand?" and Ginny ran to her chair in the sitting room, out of earshot of the children, and began to bawl.

Ginny was in shock. She cried for as long as she could, but the urgency of certain unanswered questions moved her to get up . She drank a glass of water and went back to find Harry. Harry was still awake and pacing the room.

"Are you alright, Ginny? What can I do?"

"I'll be alright." Ginny said with as much confidence as she could muster. "Right now, I need to talk. Did you cheat on me?"

"What? Merlin. No! I mean, to be honest, I've wished I could... you know... find out what it would be like, to experiment I suppose... But I never did. I swear I never did- I'm- Well, I'm Harry Potter! It's not like I could just go out and try something. Everyone in the world would recognize me, and it would be all over the papers!... And of course, there were you and the kids to think about. I didn't want to do that to you. So, no. I did not cheat on you, Gin."

Ginny took a deep breath and ran her fingers through her graying but still fiercely red hair. "Do you still love me? I mean, you said your blood didn't turn totally blue. It was a little bit violet. What exactly does that mean for us?"

Now it was Harry's turn to take a deep breath. "I don't know. I think that, on an emotional level, well...I think of you more like a friend. A really amazing, wonderful, beautiful friend! After the war was over, I just wanted everything to be peaceful and normal. I thought being married was the answer. You were everything that was good and wholesome- to have a family, a home of our own... But maybe we should have waited. I'm so sorry! I just didn't understand back then. Now, I think now that I am always going to feel lonely if I'm together with a woman. I've been thinking about it for weeks. I can't ask you to share me with someone else, either. That's not fair. I just don't know what to do, and that scares me to death!"

"Merlin, Harry! All these years, I've been utterly devoted to you. I just can't believe you never said anything to me! Harry Potter's wife. It's been you, always you, for me since we met. I was never seriously interested in anyone else. You were all that mattered. You rescued me from Voldemort in the Chamber of Secrets! I thought- I just- I never expected anything like this. I know you've always been distant, but I always thought you just needed more time to get over the War. Or maybe if I just tried harder to be the perfect wife, I could fix it. I thought I understood you better than anyone. I- I don't even know who I am without you, Harry. Just...damn!" Ginny went away to cry more, and then returned again.

She was totally spent. "The children will be up soon. I don't know how I'm going to do it, but I have to try to get at least an hour's sleep. Tomorrow is Saturday. I'm taking the children to stay with mum, and we are going to make Hermione and Ron come over for the first time in ages, and we are going to sort this thing out. Good night." And she walked to the couch and curled up. Gradually, sleep found Ginny.

A few hours later, she woke up feeling like she had been run over over by an angry hippogriff, but determined to face the new day.

(Personal note: if any readers are going through something like this right now, they can go to straightspouse. org and find all kinds of support. You are not alone!)


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2- Making a Plan

Hermione was not terribly surprised that morning when an owl arrived from Harry asking her and Ron to come over as soon as they were able. She was really a wonderful sister-in-law. In about fifteen minutes, she had managed to be dressed, to wake Hugo and Rose up and set out toast and juice, and then to rouse the soundly-sleeping Ron, tell him that something big was up and that he would need to get the kids dressed and drop them off at the Burrow before meeting her at Harry and Ginny's house. (Magic was really wonderful at times like this! Hermione still never took it for granted.) In another fifteen minutes after that, she had arrived by floo, made a strong pot of coffee, and had fried up bacon,sausage, eggs, mushrooms, and tomatoes beside an enormous tower of toast, all before the Potter children came racing downstairs in their pajamas.

"Aunt Hermione! What are you doing here?" James asked.

"I'm here to make you breakfast and take you over to see your Grandma and Granddad. You didn't think you'd get to start at Hogwarts next week without spending a full day with them, did you? Not a chance!"

This explanation satisfied both Lily and Albus, who gave a celebratory whoop and promptly began gobbling down bacon, but James gave Hermione a long, scrutinizing look. She wondered how much he knew or suspected of his parents' troubles.

Soon Ginny came down the stairs. Was this what it felt like to be underwater without breathing? She had been unconscious during that part of the Triwizard tournament. Harry had saved her then, but he said last night that she was his friend, she thought bitterly-just some bloody symbol for home and family. She smiled weakly at Hermione and the breakfast, suppressed the flood of more tears that threatened to burst through at the unexpected kindness. Then she gave James, Albus, and Lily long hugs and a kiss.

"Mum!" Albus complained.

"Oh don't mind me, dear. You know I love you so much, and sometimes I just can't help giving you an extra hug." When James gave her the same look he had given his aunt, Ginny said, "Everything is going to be alright, sweetie. I'm feeling a little sad right now, but I'm going to be okay. Aunt Hermione is here to cheer me up. No need to worry! Quick now, eat up your eggs before Albus devours the lot of them!"

Within the hour, Hermione had bundled the Potter kids over to the Burrow, where a slightly put out but also rather pleased Molly Weasley was ready to indulge and amuse two more of her grandkids for as long as they needed to stay.

"Hermione, why do you have to be so wonderful?" said a very grateful Ginny when she returned. "I really wanted to be mad at you!"

"I'm sure you should be! It's been nearly a month, now! If Harry hadn't told you this week, I was about to do it myself. I can't imagine what both of you have been going through all this time!"

"Yes, and as usual, you and Harry have been figuring it all out, while helpless little Ginny stayed at home, completely in the dark! I never really got over the fact that in those first moments after he defeated Voldemort, he chose you and Ron over me. I was standing right there, and he walked past me without even a look or a word. Oh, and now it all makes perfect sense! But it's him that I'm really mad at, not you. He's the one who should have been confiding in me all this time!" A vase exploded on the wall in the kitchen. "And that's another thing. Look at me! I'm a total disaster. Blowing up vases by accident. I have been his nursemaid for the past however long. Shut up alone with the kids in this house, ashamed for anyone to come over and see what it's like, worried to go away and leave him for too long. My hair is going gray when I'm only thirty-five! When was the last time I bothered to wash my hair or put on a dress? When was the last time Harry and I did anything at all? He hasn't looked me in the eyes in ages. Oh, and last night at dinner, I couldn't even mend a teacup! What on earth am I going to do, Hermione?"

Unfortunately, Harry chose that particular moment to come down to breakfast. Several more vases exploded simultaneously. "Um, Ginny, would you like me to go away and come back a little later?" he asked.

"No. You need to be here. Poor Hermione has been having to listen to what was really meant for you. You, Harry, have never treated me like a real wife, and I have been a fool to spend my life trying to fix you! And now our poor kids! What on earth are we going to tell them?"

"Ginny, I... Oh, the truth, I suppose. Did I mention how sorry I am? I'm really, really sorry, Ginny! But you're glad I told you, right? Please give me a little credit here. I know it's damned awkward timing, what with Albus starting his first year at Hogwarts in a week, but I suppose there is no perfect time to tell them. Maybe school will be a good distraction for the boys. And then you'll only have Lily to look after, so-"

"How dare you-" Ginny interrupted, but at this moment, Ron came in through the fire. "Hi Ginny! Hi Harry! Good to see you, it's been ages since you invited me over here." He looked down at the floor and the shattered glass under his shoes. "Blimey, what's going on? And is that bacon over there? It must be bad if you're standing over here while bacon is sitting on the table!"

Hermione punched Ron on the arm. "Always breakfast, with you, isn't it?"

But Ginny cracked a smile. "Oh come on in, Ron. I suppose it's true: no good ever came of fighting on an empty stomach. But just wait till you hear the news! You can help me hex your best friend out of his chair. Hermione didn't already tell you?"

"Well," Ron looked confused. "She told me I'd better get myself over here early, or else-" his ears turned pink, as he met Hermione's eyes. "Well, just you never mind why!"

Ginny began weeping silently. Ron looked even more confused.

"Okay, I'd better say it then, I'm uh, well, I'm gay, or bisexual, or... something." Ron sprayed his juice across the table in shock.

"Thanks for that, mate," said Harry. (He did a quick _scourgify_ spell to clean them all off.) "And just for the record, I'm the same person I've always been. So Ron, don't have kittens! I promise you're _not_ my type."

"You're never! You're taking the Mickey out of me, right Harry?" When Harry didn't answer, he turned to Hermione, "He's gone round the twist, is that it?"

"No, Ron. He really is gay. We did the orientation spell on him a few weeks ago."

"Wait, what? _We_? _We_ did the spell? You mean you did, Hermione, and you didn't mention it to me? You never mentioned that my own best friend is a-"

"No, I didn't Ronald! I thought he should tell you himself," she snapped. "Now please try and be a little more supportive!"

"But-but-but, he's married to Ginny! Harry, this is so wrong, mate. Why didn't you say something? And what about Ginny?! You are not going to abandon my sister. I will never let you do that!"

"Ron, I'm not abandoning anyone. I care about Ginny more than I can say! We haven't exactly decided what to do yet, though, and Ginny wanted to have you over to figure it out with us."

"Well, that's pretty obvious, isn't it?" Ron surprised everyone by saying. "I've seen a thing or two as auror over the years. You'll have to take that potion. That- oh bother the name- Hermione knows it, I'm sure. To change your orientation. You have to. For Ginny and the kids. There's no way I'm going to let my sister take the potion to change her into a man. So this is the only option!"

"Ron, I don't believe you!" Hermione objected. "You can't be serious! That potion is against the law. It was banned in 1944 when Grindelwald starting hunting down homosexuals and using it _en_ _masse_. It's almost as bad as the Dementor's Kiss, Ron. Haven't you read the descriptions of what it does to people who take it?"

"Sh-t, Hermione. I didn't think it was that bad! One time I arrested a man who was brewing the potion, but I got to him before he could use it on himself. Well, what, then?"

Ginny spoke up now. "Nobody's taking any potions. I'm staying a woman, and Harry is who he is. Maybe he can't exactly love me, but I love him, and I won't let anyone do that to him! What good would he be to me or anybody else like that? No, we'll do what everybody does, I guess. We'll get a divorce. We'll have to tell the kids this week, and you'll have to make a plan for coming out, and I'm going to take some time for myself. The boys will both be in school now, and I can find a way to go to work part-time somewhere. I was thinking about that anyway. But we're not doing it all today! Today, Hermione and I are going to go out. We're going to have a drink, and then we're each going to get ourselves a new dress!"

"Ginny, is that what you really want, a divorce?"

"I'm not happy about it, but what else can you think of, Harry?"

Harry opened his mouth to say something and then closed it again. "I- I'm sorry I haven't been much help to you lately, Gin. I'm going to try to be a better father, and a better- a better _friend_ to you. You and Hermione go, then. Ron and I will, Ron and I will-"

"We're going to play quidditch," announced Ron. "Right after I get us some firewhiskeys. Merlin's pants, Harry! And you just watch out, I still might knock you off your broom!"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Sorting Things Out for a Fresh Beginning

After Hermione restored the Potters' flower vases from piles of broken glass back to their original state, Ginny and Hermione flooed over to Diagon Ally. It was bustling with people. Hermione smacked herself on the forehead. "Oh! It's a week before the term starts at Hogwarts! Ginny, do you want to go somewhere more private?"

"Um, I don't know. Do you think we should? Or...no. No," she said more firmly as she made up her mind. "We said we're going out, and I haven't really gone to town in at least a year, and if we go home, I'll just cry more. Let's just walk around for a bit. The sun is nice here."

They walked past shops filled with so many memories. The book store still had some kind of magnetic pull on Hermione, even though they were all grown up and Hermione's home library was now so large that it could rival the little shop's selection. (Ron had put an extension charm on that part of their house and installed dozens of rows of shelves on her twenty-fifth birthday.) Ginny sighed. How had Ron learned to be so thoughtful, while Harry had drifted so far away? This was also the shop where Lucius Malfoy had slipped her Tom Riddle's diary so long ago. The diary that _Harry_ had rescued her from. Her life seemed so unreal right now. This was going to be a long day. Instead of letting Hermione drag her inside, Ginny kept plodding ahead. Dress robes. They had come out to get new dress robes.

As they kept walking toward Madam Malkin's, Ginny didn't take in much of her surroundings. She had a dazed and worn look fixed on her freckled face, and a sort of hopelessness in the swing of her arms. But still they walked on until they almost collided in the doorway of the dressmaker's shop with none other than the entire Malfoy family. It was Draco and Astoria and a little blond boy who must be Scorpius. They were all here, no doubt, to get him ready for school. Draco was holding Scorpius' hand and had been half-grinning at something the boy was talking about, when he looked up and saw Ginny Potter and Hermione Weasley. He looked at the pair, and at Ginny's disheveled appearance in particular, and condescendingly raised one eyebrow, but said nothing.

"Excuse us, Malfoy, Mrs. Malfoy," said Hermione coldly, breaking the silence.

"Certainly, Mrs. Weasley, Mrs. Potter," he replied, with just the smallest hint of dislike in his tone, especially on the word _Potter_.

Ginny felt like she had been punched in the gut. Soon she would no longer be Mrs. Potter, the name that had defined her for so many years. Hermione whisked her past them and into the store before Ginny could react.

An hour later, they emerged with their new robes packed magically into little parcels with anti-wrinkling and self-hanging spells. Ginny's was champagne colored and airy, with little ruffles about the collar and on the skirt. The waist was draped somehow to make her look very trim. She had felt dumpy ever since Lily was born, and told herself that it was unrealistic to expect anything different. She'd give up anything for her children, after all. But Hermione assured her that it was all in her head. "There, look at you! You are gorgeous. See how you're already standing up straighter?" she cooed. Hermione, who had always been disinclined to shop for clothing had made a real effort today for Ginny's sake. Ginny had insisted she take something home too, and so she had settled on something striking - it was coffee and flame colored, which set off the dark brown and auburn highlights in her hair. It also exposed more of her back than Ron usually approved of her showing in public. In exchange, Ginny's dress had a square neckline that revealed much more cleavage than Harry usually approved of.

"Ginny, I'm giving you an assignment. After we get the kids off to Hogwarts, you think of someplace you want to go in our dresses, and we'll go out together. A concert, a play, whatever you like. Agreed?"

Ginny smiled at her. "Thanks, Hermione. I'd like that. Now... there's one more thing," she hesitated.

"Anything! The sky's the limit, Gin."

"Well, I was thinking we should go into Flourish and Blotts before we head home."

"Oh, Ginny, this is your day. I know I always drool a bit when we pass their window, but we don't have to go in there."

"Hermione! Of course I do know that you like the store. You are probably their best customer after the Ministry's supply order man. But _maybe_ I wanted to go in there for myself this time."

"Ginny, I'm sorry! But wait a minute, I see that mischievous twinkle. What on earth do you have in mind?"

"Well, I may as well tell you. I've been thinking about this for months, actually. I'm not in good enough shape to play quidditch professionally. Not anymore. But- I miss the game, I really do. I thought I might try my hand at writing about it, just part-time for now, after Albus starts school." She looked at the ground, embarrassed.

"Ginny, that's brilliant! You'll be incredible!"

"What, really? You really think so?"

"Of course I do! And every newspaper and quidditch magazine in England will be clambering to print whatever you write. You know the game better than anyone, and you know how to make it funny and interesting when you talk about it. Oh, you will be absolutely brilliant! Come on-" she grabbed Ginny's hand and started dragging her inside.

The shop owner looked up and smiled warmly. "Hermione! So good to see you! How did that new ink-vanishing laundry potion work out for you last week? Is Hugo still up to his antics?"

"Hello, David! It's good to see you too. Oh, he's always getting into something, isn't he? But it worked just as well as you said it would. Even stains with unvanishable-ink. Remarkable potion, that. But actually, we're here today for my friend Ginny."

"Oh, of course! Mrs. Potter, I presume. So honored!"

"You can call me Ginny, Mr. Blotts. Can you show us your Quick Quotes Quills, please?"

"Certainly, certainly! We have an extensive line, all different personalities, you know. Chatty, gossipy, sarcastic, condescending, scathing, exaggerating, nonsensical-" Ginny tried not to roll her eyes, thinking of Rita Skeeter.

"I'm interested in the original model. Does it still come with its' 100% lifetime accuracy guarantee?"

"Oh, well, yes. We don't sell too many of them anymore. But of course, for you, Miss... er... Ginny, I mean, I would not expect anything different. And 25% off for such a special customer. Do come back in whenever you need anything at all! Delighted to be of service today."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

There were many difficult conversations in store for Ginny and Harry that week. They took them one at a time. First, they had to tell Ginny's parents, who were anxious and downright nosy after keeping four grandchildren all day with no explanation. (Molly surprised everyone by taking the news perfectly in stride. After tearfully hugging her only daughter for a very long time, she said mildly, "We've known something was off for years, dear. We just want you both to be happy. This is the 21st century, you know. I do understand about how these things work. We'll always be here for both of you and the children. I'm just so sorry you've been suffering through this for so long!")

Then they had to tell James, Albus, and Lily. At first Harry had wanted to wait and tell the kids at Christmas break, but Hermione and Mum insisted that James was already anxious that something was wrong. So they opted to tell the children sooner, rather than leave James to the mercy of his imagination.

The conversation with the kids was not as difficult as they feared, either. Lily actually laughed. She thought the idea of Daddy liking boys was hilarious. Albus was instantly curious, and asked them all manner of endless questions. James was the only one who seemed genuinely upset. He got angry and then ran off to cry in his room. Ginny and Harry would each spend a lot of time during the rest of the week (and year) talking and listening, and mostly reassuring him and all the children that they loved them and would both always be there for them, no matter what happened.

For someone who had been too depressed to get out of bed for so long, Harry surprised even himself by finding the resources to face all of this. Coming out was putting life back into him. He had been so anxious and ashamed for so long; now for the first time in years, he was beginning to breathe without feeling like there was a weight pressing down on his chest. It was not so completely different from his experience in being struck by Voldemort. The sense of dread and impending doom, then facing the worst and finding that he was still, after all, whole and very much alive. Now he felt a sense of euphoria welling up in him when he woke in the mornings- _No need to pretend today, I can be myself._ And this gave him the energy to begin spending the time with James and Albus and Lily that he had always intended. James would be alright in time. He just needed to see for himself that his parents' words were true: that they would be there for him through all the changes; that the world would not end; at any rate, not for him, not now.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

After what seemed the longest week since the defeat of Voldemort- a whirlwind of emotion and decision-making on top of all the usual high emotion and preparations that go into sending a child off to school for the first time- the big day actually arrived.

((((((((Direct quotes from Rowling's Epilogue are interwoven and marked with an asterisk*.)))))

Lily was crying and holding on to Harry's arm, while James was having a grand time teasing Albus all the way there.

*"I _won't_! I _won't_ be in Slytherin!"

*"James, give it a rest!" said Ginny at last.

*"I only said he _might_ be," said James, grinning at his younger brother. "There's nothing wrong with that. He _might_ be in Slyth-"

*But James caught his mother's eye and fell silent.

"I know this day is hard for you, too, Jamie. Especially with everything else going on. But please, be kind to Al. He looks up to you so much. Treasure each other." she said in a low voice.

After a few minutes, they managed to find Ron and Hermione with Rose and Hugo. There was more chatting and joking and lots more hustle and bustle. Suddenly, through the clouds of steam, Ron nudged Harry.

*"Look who it is."

*Draco Malfoy was standing there with his wife and son, a dark coat buttoned up to his throat. His hair was receding somewhat, which emphasized the pointed chin. The new boy resembled Draco as much as Albus resembled Harry. Draco caught sight of Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny staring at him, nodded curtly, and turned away again.

Ginny felt a flush of embarrassment creeping up her cheeks as she remembered her encounter with the Malfoys earlier in the week.

*But Ron was saying something now. "Make sure you beat Scorpius in every test, Rosie. Thank God you inherited your mother's brains."

*"Ron, for heaven's sake," said Hermione, half stern, half amused. "Don't try to turn them against each other before they've even started school!"

A few minutes later, as they were ready to finally send Albus off on the train, Ginny overheard Harry having a private final moment with their son.

*"Albus Severus," Harry said quietly, so that nobody but Ginny could hear, and she was tactful enough to pretend to be waving to Rose, who was now on the train, "you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew."

*"But _just say_-"

*"-then Slytherin House will have gained an excellent student, won't it? It doesn't matter to us, Al." _We'll love you no matter what. Gryffindor or Slytherin. Straight or Gay or Bi. If only I could make you understand how much I love you, Al- unconditionally. "_But if it matters to you," he continued out loud, "you'll be able to choose Gryffindor over Sytherin. The Sorting Hat takes your choice into account."

"Really?"

"It did for me," said Harry. He had never told any of his children that before, and he saw the wonder in Albus's face when he said it.

Ginny was struggling with her own flood of conflicting emotions at this moment. She was so relieved to see Harry being really attentive to Albus. He really was a wonderful father. But he had been preoccupied for so long. It was like he had just come home after a very long absence. Only he had not come home for her. He would never really come home for her again.

And what about the children's names, after all? James, Albus, and Lily. Harry had named all three without even asking her opinion, and she had never thought to say a word about it. But now, she wondered if she ought to. Now that everything had changed, she would probably never get the chance to christen a fourth child "Frederick" after her own lost brother, she thought bitterly. Everything had always revolved around Harry in their marriage, and she had let it be that way. It was time to start over fresh. Time to speak up about what mattered to her. _Never again_, Ginny thought resolutely.


	4. Chapter 4

A few weeks later, Hermione and Harry sat down to lunch together at a park in the Muggle section of London. The trees were a patchwork of yellow and orange and red, and the rain had held off that morning, so the benches were dry.

"This is very nice, Hermione."

"Yes, isn't it lovely here, Harry? I often come here when I'm not in a hurry to get back to the office. It's nice to clear my head, and then there's this incredible food cart here. I desperately want to learn to make a proper tagine myself. The recipe books all describe the wandwork in the vaguest way. And it-"

Harry bit into his sausage and gasped. "Ho- hot! Er-mi-ne, wha- is this?" His eyes were streaming. His mouth and throat felt like he had just ingested spiced Fiendfyre.

"Oh dear, sorry about that, Harry! Maybe we should have ordered yours with extra pita bread? Didn't I warn you that Moroccan food can get a tad spicy?"

"A tad?!" he said, alternately fanning his mouth and gulping down more water. Hermione quickly handed him her extra container of rice and then fumbled as she tried to discreetly get her wand into her sleeve and perform a spell without letting any Muggles see it. In the process, she spilled her steaming stew onto her own lap and yelped.

"M'fine, just fine. I think my tastebuds have been permanently seared off, but it's alright. Here, take my napkins."

"I'm so sorry, Harry! Oh, look at my new skirt! Well, so much for being completely inconspicuous. I'll just scourgify it later. Wait here."

To Harry's amazement, Hermione walked back over to the same food vendor and returned with a plate of falafel and another bowl of tagine.

"Here, you still need to eat, and the falafel is perfectly safe, Harry. Don't look at me like that! I just really wanted my stew."

"So... are you making much progress on your Djinn liberation project, then?"

"Yes, I am! But don't try to sidetrack me. Down to business, Harry. I want to talk about your plan for coming out."

"Hush! We are in public, here, remember?"

"Oh, don't be ridiculous, Harry! It's a Muggle park. None of these people have a clue who you are! So I take it, then, that you would not go for my press conference idea?"

Harry raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"So what is your plan, then?"

"Hermione, I am sorry, but this is really none of your business."

"You don't have one! Harry, you can't go on like this. We need to make you a plan."

"I don't believe this!"

"Okay, so I can see you are a bit nervous about it. How about this- I'll set you up with someone from the ministry, and then you can take it slowly. Here's a list I prepared of every gay wizard- well every known gay wizard- in our age range. You _aren't _interested in older chaps are you? Anyway, just pick one, and I'll talk to him."

"Hermione, _are you insane_?! I do _not _need you to tell me how to come out, or to set me up with someone. There are some things a bloke needs to do for himself!"

She looked crestfallen. "I was afraid you'd take it that way. Ron says I am meddling too much, too. I just want you to be happy, Harry. It's going to be fine, you know, you coming out. You'll be great. Don't you at least want to see my list, though?"

"Oh, give it here, then. I can't believe you, some days." He started reading the names to himself. "Why don't I know about all of these? This is a pretty long list. Dean Thomas- the guy who Ginny used to date? Wow, that's too weird! And Oliver Wood? Well, everyone knows about Zabini... Do you actually know everyone on this list is gay, or are you only guessing? Hey, why didn't you write Malfoy's name down?"

Hermione raised her eyebrows this time. "Draco Malfoy? Harry, I'm shocked! Well, other than being a snappy dresser, I don't have any reason to think he is gay. He's married, but I suppose that doesn't means anything, does it? So do you know something I don't?"

Harry shrugged. "No, I don't. I just always figured he could be. I give you credit for being extremely thorough, though. Look, thanks for taking all the trouble, but I would like to handle this on my own. I think I can figure my love life out on my own terms. I admit it's scary, much more scary than getting together with Ginny was, but I will do it. And I promise you'll hear all about it when I'm ready. But for goodness sake, I haven't even found a new apartment yet!"

"Oh, alright, then. But before I forget, Ron says to ask you if you would like to start coming to the senior Auror meetings again now. The next one is Wednesday at four. They could really use your help."

Harry ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah, tell him I'll be there. And thanks- for everything."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Ginny and Lily had finished their breakfast, and Ginny had set Lily to do her reading for the morning, while Ginny meticulously read through the newspaper. She was making notes of different techniques in article writing. Mother and daughter were squashed up cozily next to each other on the divan. They made a picturesque pair with their matching red hair and both unconsciously biting their quills in just the same way.

"Oh!" Ginny exclaimed.

"What is it, Mum?"

"Oh, someone died. No one that you know, though, dear." There was a brief article about Astoria Greengrass Malfoy, who had just died in some tragic and horrible accident with a cursed silver comb in Malfoy manor. "I wonder what on earth happened?" she wondered privately, not wanting to disturb Lily.

But a few minutes later, the morning owl post arrived through the open kitchen window. "Mummy, the post! Did anything come for me?"

"Yes, it looks like James has written you this time. Dear boy! And here is Albus's usual letter to Daddy and me. Goodness, it's quite long this time!" Ginny read Albus's letter to herself:

"Dear Mum and Dad,  
You won't believe what happened! Scorpius- you remember my friend Scorpius? The one I told you gets teased a lot for being the son of a Death Eater? And they used to call him awful names, but I said they shouldn't be bullies because being in Griffindor means you are brave and have honour. And it turns out that Scorpius is nice, really, and he flies quite well, only not quite as well as I do. Anyway, since Dad said that Slytherins can be alright, too, I don't mind being friends with one. Scorpius had me come round to their common room to play wizarding chess, and we were having a great game because I had taken both his knights already, but THEN, his dad came to see him, and it was just awful! You won't believe it, Scorpius' mum died! His dad looked just as white as a sheet, and after he told Scorpius, then he went all white too, and started to cry, and then they left together to go home, and Headmistress McGonagall says that he may stay away for some time. And she said that any of his friends who want to go to his mum's funeral can get permission to go. And please may I go? Only don't tell James because he'll pick on me!  
Love, Albus  
PS I found my way to classes this week without getting lost once! Dad, your note about the staircases really helped. Mum, thanks for sending me the ginger biscuits. I miss you all. Say hello to Lily!"

Ginny owled Albus back right away.

"Dear Albus,  
Of course you may go, darling! I'll talk to Dad about the details, and we'll work out how to take you. I can't promise that James won't hear about it, but I won't mention it if I can help it. I'm so proud of you for being a good friend. What a very sad thing to happen! I'll write more soon.  
Love,  
Mummy"

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

After Lily went to bed that evening, Ginny and Harry had a long and productive talk. Ginny rarely cried or exploded things in front of Harry now, even when it was a difficult conversation, and Harry was also becoming less defensive and easier to talk to.

Taking Albus to the funeral would be tricky because neither parent was particularly eager to go, and also because, under the circumstances, they wanted to be considerate of Draco's feelings. In the end, they decided that Ginny should go, since she had the least history with the Malfoy family. And Albus could send Scorpius some chocolate frog cards instead of flowers, if he wanted to.

They also talked over the sleeping arrangements, which were working fairly well so far. Ginny had moved into Albus's room for now, just until Harry found himself an apartment somewhere nearby. He would be looking at several possible places that week, and with luck, choose one of them soon.

They decided that Lily would start off spending weekdays with Ginny and weekends plus Fridays with Harry, and they could see how it worked.

"Can I hug you?" Harry asked when they had finished talking.

"No, Harry. Thanks, but it's not good for me right now. I'm still trying to stop thinking of you in a romantic way. But we did well tonight, didn't we? We're getting there."

"Yeah, we are. I just wish it weren't so hard. Good night then."

"Good night." Ginny remembered to breathe, and then she went into the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea. She pulled out the new blue teacup she had bought for herself a few days ago. It had been the first time she had gone shopping for herself in years. Drinking her tea from it tonight felt comforting. For so much of her life, Ginny reflected, everything had been about Harry-and-Ginny, never Ginny alone. Now this teacup was perhaps the first piece of this jigsaw puzzle that she was assembling which would become her new life, her life as just-Ginny. Holding her little blue china cup at that moment, the thought of her own life did not seem quite so terrible.

Ginny took out her quill and a folded piece of parchment and rewrote the final paragraph. It was a draft of an article on the new Irish quidditch team players. When it was ready, she would submit it to the sports editor of the Daily Prophet and see what happened.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Later that week, Ginny discreetly flooed over to Hogwarts to collect Albus for the funeral. Harry had agreed to take Lily out for the day. Ginny was still worried about how Albus would adjust to being away at school with so much change already going on at home, and so she had been relieved to find that he had made a friend so quickly, though she admitted privately to Harry that she was very surprised by who it was. In any case, she was determined to support Albus in any way she could. If he didn't want James to know that he was going to this funeral, then they would allow him to tell James about it in his own time. And if it meant escorting him to a very uncomfortable Malfoy funeral service, of all things, then so be it.

They went home first to change into funeral robes. Ginny had spent the morning struggling to charm her hair into a suave up-do that would not attract too much attention. The results were not bad; it seemed she was slowly regaining her magic. When Ginny remembered Draco Malfoy's raised eyebrow- his reaction to her appearance on That Day- she still blushed in shame. Everything about that painful day seemed to have been burned into her memory. Today, though, she was resolved not to embarrass Albus in front of every pureblood Wizarding family that still survived in England and maybe France. She was sure they would all be there. She could do this, she told herself; it was for Albus.

Once she had collected him from Hogwarts, she felt better. As a woman, Ginny might feel inadequate and uncertain these days, but as a mother, she was completely at ease. Albus was a talker, and Ginny was happy to listen. He began the moment they saw each other. Today the topic absorbing all his attention was what to expect at his first funeral. And Ginny-as-Mum was amused to hear herself answering convincingly about what everything would be like, when, in truth, she had only the vaguest ideas about what to expect of a Malfoy family funeral.

"...Will he have gotten my chocolate frog cards yet, Mum?"

"I'm sure he will, Albus. We sent the owl with them yesterday. And you wrote him a nice note to go with them. I'm sure he will really appreciate knowing he has a friend who cares about him right now."

"What should I say to him when we see him at the funeral, Mum?"

"Well, you can shake his hand, of course. And just say anything nice that you think of. 'I'm so sorry,' always works, you know..."

Soon enough, the two of them had arrived at their destination. The service was to be held in the old Malfoy manor chapel. The place was gloomy and imposing, but Ginny had Albus by her side, so she merely stood up straighter and tried to walk with confidence. Inside, the chapel was filled with an ostentatious display of family solidarity. The Malfoy crest, silver and black tinged with green, figured very prominently in the chapel decorations. It was on several banners and carved into every pew. Flowers around the coffin had been chosen to match: white and green with black and silver ribbons. Through the clouds of incense, dim light slanted in from high stained glass windows, each depicting different Malfoy ancestors, some dressed as knights with sword and wand, others who looked like smirking Merlins, and each underscored with Latin or French mottos like "Sanguis Purissimus" and "Le Chevalier Malefoy." A house-elf bowed and then guided Ginny and Albus to a seat in one of the ornately carved pews.

The family filed in just before the service began, and Scorpius gratefully caught Albus' eye. He whispered something in his father's ear, and then Malfoy, too, looked over and nodded ever so slightly in their direction- an acknowledgement. His face was stony and inscrutable. Ginny thought he looked like a man who was trying to hide his pain.

They sat through the service, so different from Dumledore's funeral. His had been planned as a memorial for the entire wizarding community, but Astoria's was clearly meant to be a private, family affair. There was no mention of the circumstances of her death, and very little about her personally at all. It seemed to be an ancient family ritual, partly in Latin, partly in Norman French, with a sprinkling of English thrown in, all performed without any explanation to outsiders. The Greengrass family were present in a place of honor- Ginny recognized Astoria's older sister Daphne up at the front- but they were clearly not the ones in charge of this ceremony.

When the service ended and the billows of cloying incense lifted a bit, Ginny and Albus got in line to pay their last respects and greet the family. Albus seemed hesitant, and for a moment Ginny feared that some former Death Eater would come bearing down on them for holding up the line, but in fact, when she looked around, she did not see any Death Eaters there at all- not even Lucius Malfoy, for that matter. The turnout was rather small, and seemed mostly restricted to family and several members of Slytherin who, like the Greengrass family, had never directly allied themselves with Voldemort. No one seemed to notice or mind Albus' hold up. Ginny squeezed his hand and told him not to worry about what do, but just to follow her lead. And a moment later, she had actually done it: she had politely shaken hands with Draco and said she was very sorry for his loss, and he had thanked her for coming and bringing Albus. Albus merely touched his friend's shoulder and said nothing, but that had been all that was necessary. Ginny's heart melted at the sight of young Scorpius, bravely standing stiff beside his father, with his little face so red and puffy. Poor child!

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

It was an emotional day. When Ginny and Albus got home, Harry told them that he and Lily had been out looking at apartments and finally picked one. Lily was very excited about having chosen it herself, and waxed poetic about the lilac walls in the room that would be hers. She wanted to bring Albus there straight away to show him, but Ginny made them wait until after tea. "You really did it, then?" she asked Harry weakly.

"It helped to have Lily with me. She has a wonderful sense of decor, don't you dear?"

Albus was getting excited, too, as Harry mentioned that Lily had talked him into getting a pet, and offered to play twenty questions with Albus to guess what it would be. Ginny excused herself from the table, saying she wanted to change out of her funeral things.

She went up to James's room, which she was using as her room these days, and put her head down and cried. She had been looking forward to all of them moving on, but she did not know it would happen so fast. She had expected Harry's moving out to be a sad, mournful thing- something like the funeral she'd just been to... The faces of Draco and Scorpius flashed across her mind again. What must they be going through right now? Malfoy or not, she wanted so badly to scoop up that little lost blond child and comfort him... She wrenched her thoughts back to the present. Ginny had never expected such a party atmosphere about Harry finding his new place. She even felt a twinge of jealousy. What if the children liked their cool new gay dad with his cool new bachelor apartment and ridiculous Mystery Pet better than their old worn-out mum? Why was she feeling this way? She should be relieved and pleased, after all, that they were spending time together. How long had she been angry with Harry for neglecting his children and dumping all the parenting on her? Ginny forcibly pulled herself together again. She threw on some regular clothes and went back down to the end of tea.

"Are you alright, Gin?" Harry asked when she came back. He had been a bit slow on the uptake lately, but he still knew her better than anyone.

"I'm fine- It's just been a long day. Why don't you all go together to see the apartment now? I think I feel like having a bit of a lie-down this evening. Albus, you can stay here tonight and we'll take you back to Hogwarts in the morning after breakfast. What do you think, Harry?"

"No problem, Ginny. Hope you feel better soon. Take a hot bath, maybe?" he almost gave her his usual peck on the cheek, but when she gave him _the look_, he remembered to back off. It was an odd situation. His feelings had not changed at all for her- it was the same friendly warmth he had always felt- and it was hard for him to remember that things were different now between them. He had never meant to hurt Ginny. Harry sighed, and then took Albus and Lily through the fireplace. "Number 24 A Meadowlark Street" they repeated one after the other.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The next morning was a busy one. Ginny returned Albus to Hogwarts and came home just in time to get the morning owl post. She was surprised and delighted to receive a warm reply from the editor of the Daily Prophet. They wanted to publish her article, and could she please come round as soon as it was convenient to discuss writing a regular column in the quidditch section? They were simply thrilled at the idea that she had taken up sportswriting. Ginny got up and danced Lily around the room.

"Mummy's getting a job! Mummy's going to write a quidditch column!" The two of them skipped Lily's morning lessons and went outside to fly around on broomstick. Lily held on tightly while Ginny flew them in circles, and then Lily got off while Ginny tried a few of her old flying tricks. She almost fell off her broom and began to laugh at herself. "Your mum is seriously out of shape, Lilykins. We need to do this more often!"

That afternoon, she met with the editor-in-chief, Mathilda Codswallop, who was enthusiastic about Ginny's prospects as a writer. Just as Hermione had predicted, they appreciated her knowledge and background as a player, but also her humorous style and the publicity of getting to using her name. They wanted her to start off writing once a week, but anticipated that she might switch to a daily column once she was up to speed. She was welcome to work from home and send in her work by owl as long as she attended a training workshop that weekend and appeared for the short staff meetings on Monday mornings. Ginny had not dared to imagine it could all be this easy. She signed a stack of forms and went home to rearrange her calendar.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

A few days later, Friday evening, Harry came whistling to the dinner table. Ginny's stomach clenched. She hadn't seen him so cheerful in ages. Did this mean...? She didn't know if she was ready to face the prospect of a new boyfriend just yet.

"You seem cheerful," she prompted cautiously.

"I am!" Harry answered. "Have you noticed that I've been working longer hours this week? Well, I didn't want to say anything until I worked it all out, but I've finally done it! I'm not going to be in the auror supervisor office anymore- I asked for a transfer to the auror training office. I'll be training the new recruits now."

Ginny let her breath out. "What- what's that?" she began to laugh. "Oh, Harry! Don't tease me like that! I thought you were about to announce that you'd met someone at work." Lily looked confused, but Harry turned beet red.

"Well no, no I haven't, that's not what I... But...but aren't you happy for me? I think this will be a much better fit than my old job. I'm really excited about teaching. I think I'm going to really enjoy it. It'll be a bit like the DA, don't you think?"

"Oh, of course. I'm sorry, dear. No, that's great. I'm very happy for you. It's brilliant. How long have you been thinking about -" Ginny burst into giggles. "I'm sorry, Harry, I-"

Suddenly the tension broke and Harry started laughing as well. Lily looked very confused, but as her parents both kept on laughing, she burst into giggles too. Soon it was all three of them just laughing and laughing, rocking back and forth, gasping for breath until the tears were streaming down.


End file.
